Free Birthright - Book 2 of the Legacy Series (An Urban Fantasy Novel) by Ryan Attard Page A

something different. When it comes to alcohol and firearms, nothing beats American.”
    I nodded, raised my glass, and met his in midair.
    “Do I get some, too?” Amaymon’s voice was muffled, with noodles wrapped around his whiskers.
    “No. Last thing I need is a drunk version of you,” I replied.
    “Just for that I’m eating all the noodles.”
    “You would have eaten them anyway.”
    “True.”
    I snatched a rice cracker and munched on it. It was not a good idea to drink on an empty stomach, and considering I hadn’t had a proper meal since the previous day, I tried to fill up so that I wouldn’t make too much a fool of myself.
    “You said you wanted to talk?” I said to Sun Tzu.
    He set down his glass and refilled it, his storm-gray eyes never leaving mine. “Yes. I wanted to discuss that strange ability you used downstairs.”
    “Look, Sun Tsu, I’m really sorry about that. I didn’t mean to hit you, I just panicked. From where I was standing it looked like you were killing her or something,” I said.
    Sun Tzu raised his hand. “It’s fine. I completely understand. It is only natural to want to protect those you love. I would be a fool to hold that against you.”
    I nearly choked on my whiskey. “Love? Nah, she’s just my apprentice.”
    “And that is a form of love, my dear friend. Now, why don’t you tell me all about your ability?” asked Tzu.
    “There’s not much to explain,” I replied. “Amaymon did tell you all about Lust right?” He nodded. “Well, that’s it really. When she killed me, I got sent to another dimension or something and saw this huge black tree. There was some strange creature there, never saw anything like it.”
    “You were sent to Ashura. It’s a small plane, very close to ours. The Ashendales razed it clean of all life, back in the day,” said Amaymon. “What you saw was most likely a manifestation of your soul. But I don’t know why Ashura specifically, or why you are the only one who can go there when it’s off limits to everyone else. It doesn’t even register on the maps, so to speak.”
    “Why do you say a manifestation of the soul?” asked Sun Tzu.
    “I see that damn tree every time I access my power,” I replied. “It’s like I get pulled there but I never really leave.” I took another swig of booze, hoping that the alcohol intake could make sense out of that last sentence.
    It didn’t.
    “It seems that something is pulling at your soul, and using this power of yours is triggering it,” said Tzu.
    “Why can’t it just pick up a phone and say it outright?” I grumbled. Sun Tzu didn’t answer, but poured me another glass. The way this conversation was heading, I was going to need a designated driver by the time I left.
    “What are the specifics of this power?” said Sun Tzu.
    “Shadows, it seems. Black stuff. Reinforces matter and transmutes on a whim. As far as I can tell, it’s some form of armor.”
    Amaymon looked at me. “You’re kidding, right? That’s the best you could come up with?” He shook his head, throwing noodles everywhere. “It’s obvious that those ‘shadows’ are energy, the purest kind. They respond to the most basic of instincts and constantly evolve with the user.”
    Sun Tzu directed his next question to the cat. “Do you have any idea as to the type of energy it is?”
    “Life magic.”
    Sun Tzu raised his eyebrows. “Life Magic? Impossible. That is the earliest magic in the universe, the power to create and change life itself. It is the power of the gods, not mankind.”
    “You explain this situation, then,” challenged Amaymon. “When an asmodaii gave this idiot a hole the size of a plate in his chest, an archangel grabbed a fistful of anima particles and shoved them inside him. And then, lo and behold, the idiot walks right back up as if nothing had happened. I’m telling you, that’s Life magic. I don’t know how, but that’s the only logical explanation I got.”
    “Magic like that